Ex-Tata man is JMM nominee

OUR BUREAU

Niroop Kumar Mahanty

Ranchi/Jamshedpur, March 19: JMM managed to pacify its East Singhbhum unit and named former Tata Steel senior executive Niroop Kumar Mahanty as its candidate for the coveted Jamshedpur Lok Sabha seat today.

“Shri Mahanty will be our party’s candidate in Jamshedpur. From today, all workers at various organisational levels would actively work towards the victory of our candidates in four seats, besides those of our allies, Congress and RJD, in other seats,” party secretary general Supriyo Bhattacharya said today at the Bariatu party headquarters.

The district panel today formally recommended Mahanty’s name to the central leadership, laying to rest speculation about dissent that had threatened to mar the party’s prospects in the parliamentary elections.

“We have resolved to support Mahanty’s candidature from Jamshedpur. There is no dissent in our unit,” said JMM district committee president Ramesh Hansda after a meeting at party office at Uliyan at Kadma in Jamshedpur.

Thanking the district unit, Mahanty, claimed he was not aware that his name was doing the rounds. “I am now with the JMM and will remain with the party. Winning or losing does not matter,” he said.

JMM also announced names of candidates for 17 seats of Bihar, Bengal and Assam, while the party said it would also field candidates in Odisha where chief minister Hemant Soren would be going tomorrow to address a meeting in Rairangpur.

BJP candidate

But JMM lost another MLA to the BJP today. Its MLA from Baharagora Bidyut Baran Mahto, joined BJP in Delhi in the presence of party president Rajnath Singh and former chief minister Arjun Munda.

“Bidyut Baran Mahto joined today,” Munda said, hours after which the party announced his name as the candidate for Jamshedpur.

A notification for voting in Jamshedpur, to be held on April 17, was issued today. Candidates can file nominations till March 26. Apart from JMM and BJP, the only other party to announce its candidate is the JVM which renominated sitting MP Ajoy Kumar.